One association even appointed a "missionary" whose duty it
was to warn the people against sending their children to Tuskegee.
This missionary had a son in the school, and I noticed that, whatever
the "missionary" might have said or done with regard to others, he was
careful not to take his son away form the institution. Many of the
coloured papers, especially those that were the organs of religious
bodies, joined in the general chorus of condemnation or demands for
retraction.
During the whole time of the excitement, and through all the
criticism, I did not utter a word of explanation of retraction. I
knew that I was right, and that time and the sober second thought of
the people would vindicate me. It was not long before the bishops and
other church leaders began to make careful investigation of the
conditions of the ministry, and they found out that I was right. In
fact, the oldest and most influential bishop in one branch of the
Methodist Church said that my words were far too mild. Very soon
public sentiment began making itself felt, in demanding a purifying of
the ministry. While this is not yet complete by any means, I think I
may say, without egotism, and I have been told by many of our most
influential ministers, that my words had much to do with starting a
demand for the placing of a higher type of men in the pulpit.
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